


Kill You in the Morning

by sunshinegay



Category: Lord of the Flies - William Golding
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Fluff, M/M, The Princess Bride themes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-07
Updated: 2016-11-07
Packaged: 2018-08-29 18:48:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8501242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunshinegay/pseuds/sunshinegay
Summary: Ralph never really knew what those words on his wrist meant, and if he really had been born with the right words all along. "Jack Merridew" had been on the inside of his wrist in barely legible handwriting for as long as he could remember. He asked his parents about it once, when he was very little, but they just looked angry and told him that it had nothing to do with anything. His grandmother told him when he was eight that it was someone who was very special whom he would like a lot. School told him it was someone called a soul mate, and that they would want to spend the rest of their lives together. Ralph didn't ever get it though.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I imagined them 15 or so when they first came to the island instead of twelve, but other than that and the soulmate aspect of it, everything before this takes place is mostly canon.  
> Additionally, everyone is a little ooc but it's all good.

Ralph never  _ really  _ knew what those words on his wrist meant, and if he really _ had _ been born with the right words all along. 

_ Jack Merridew  _ had been on the inside of his wrist in barely legible handwriting for as long as he could remember. He asked his parents about it once, when he was very little, but they just looked angry and told him that it had nothing to do with anything. 

His grandmother told him when he was eight that it was someone who was very special whom he would like a lot. School told him it was someone called a  _ soul mate _ , and that they would want to spend the rest of their lives together. 

Ralph didn't ever get it though. 

While he was staring into  _ Jack Merridew’s  _ (admittedly, very  _ pretty _ ) eyes, pleading for his  _ life,  _ he didn't get at  _ all  _ what any of that was supposed to mean. 

It rushed through his head at an alarming speed that he was supposed to be in  _ love  _ with this boy that was currently trying to  _ kill  _ him. 

When they first met, and Jack had said his full name (he was the only one to do so, what an idiot), Ralph had thought he was so  _ lucky  _ to have finally met his soulmate. He decided not to tell Jack about the writing on his wrist right away because he didn't want to cause drama. 

But look where he was now, in a clearing surrounded by those  _ savages _ who were all holding dangerously sharpened sticks. And Jack, with that  _ smirk  _ (damn him!) was advancing towards him with a stick and Ralph swallowed heavily. 

“Ralph, Ralph, Ralph,” Jack sighed, taking another step towards the smaller boy, smirk as wide as ever. “You know, I’ve saved your blood for last, pretty boy,” he purred. “You’re the one I’ve wanted to kill the most.”

“God, Merridew,” he tried, taking a small, tentative step backwards. “You don't have to be in my tribe or even  _ like  _ me, but you don't have to  _ kill _ me.”

Jack let out a growl, lunging out and grabbing both of Ralph’s wrists, squeezing down  _ hard.  _ Ralph tried to pull away, backing up as far as he could, but Jack just smiled again, pushing him back against a tree. Within seconds, Ralph’s wrists were pinned above his head, and Jack’s nose was almost touching his. 

“Oh yes, I  _ do,”  _ Jack whispered, pulling back slightly to eye his prey, from his toes all the way up to his wrists. His eyes stopped though when they reached Ralph’s hands, and Jack’s grip lightened slightly. Ralph was able to yank his hands away. Jack snapped back into attention, but Ralph had already darted away from him, into the woods. The boys all around him started to move towards the trees to follow him, but Jack held out his hand. 

“No!” he growled, turned towards his tribe. 

“That one’s  _ mine.” _

***

Ralph noticed that something was wrong approximately two week later, and that was because it had been approximately two weeks since Jack had attacked him. He knew deep down somewhere that Jack was probably just plotting some master plan to sneak up and kill him while his mind was at ease. However, part of him couldn't stop dwelling on how Jack had faltered when he saw his wrists, and how he might have been looking at the  _ name.  _ He knew, though, deep down, that Jack couldn't care less if they were bloody  _ soulmates.  _

Even though he was being left  _ blissfully  _ alone, things were in a rapid decline. He was getting sick- really, really sick. Ralph knew from the start that it was only a matter of time before it happened, he got sick all the time at home. In fact, he was really lucky it had waited this long to spring up on him. It was, unfortunately, getting worse, and the dizziness spells and headaches were getting more and more frequent.

It came to a peak one day when Ralph was by a stream, trying to wash up a bit. He had known that this morning wouldn't be a good day for his head. He was sweating profusely and his head was throbbing, like tiny needles testing to see if his brain was really there. 

However, he started to feel  _ incredibly  _ dizzy while on the rocks, and he felt himself start to fall. Then, it went dark. 

***

Ralph's head was throbbing and his vision was cloudy when he first attempted to open his eyes. In fact, he ached all over, and all he wanted to do was fall asleep again, but something felt  _ off.  _

With a jolt, he sat up, realizing that it was because he was  _ certainly  _ not in his small shelter by the beach. This was somewhere  _ new,  _ and there was somebody in there with him.

“You know, sitting up like that will only make your head feel worse,” the voice beside him purred. Ralph closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath. 

“Jack,” he mumbled. “What am I doing here?”

“Well, Princess-”

“Don’t call me that.”

Jack grinned. “It’s not nice to interrupt,  _ Princess.  _ We were out on a hunt and we found you by a river. You must have fallen and hit your head. God, there was  _ so  _ much  _ blood.  _ I didn't know what to do.”

“Why did you help me?”

Jack stopped for a moment, but then his easy, practiced smile returned. “Because if I let you die there, I wouldn't get the satisfaction of killing you myself.”

“And you didn't kill me right there because…?”

“You see, Princess,” Jack began, and shot Ralph a look to make him close his mouth. “When I kill you, I want you to be  _ fully  _ aware of it happening, because if you weren't, it wouldn't be any  _ fun. _ So here’s the deal, Pretty Boy. I’m going to let you recover fully, and then I’m going to kill you. How’s that sound, hmm?”

“I-I don’t understand,” Ralph whispered, subconsciously rubbing at his wrist (a horrid nervous habit.)

“Go back to bed, Princess. I want you to recover as fast as possible. You know, so that I can kill you as fast as possible.”

Ralph found himself nodding, and laying back, head spinning and heart racing. 

***

Ralph floated in and out of consciousness for what must have been the next few days.  

He heard snippets of conversations around him, mostly what sounded like arguing, and he vaguely remembered someone making sure he ate and drank. He was always very hot, and he registered someone regularly laying something damp on his forehead, but he wasn't sure who it was. Everything was very hazy. 

He was able to fully sit up almost a full week after being found by Jack. And when he finally was able to, that was who was waiting for him, smirk plastered onto his face. 

“Feeling better, Princess?”

“Yah, I suppose,” Ralph mumbled out, trying to turn to look at Jack properly, but he let out a small whimper. Okay, so moving was out of the question. 

“You could probably kill me now, I you wanted to.”

They watched each other closely for a couple of moments before Jack let out a small sigh. 

“Not yet. You still haven't recovered all the way, have you Princess? I guess you're just too stubborn to recover in a  _ reasonable  _ amount of time.”

Ralph felt himself smile for the first time in a while. 

“Jack Merridew, are you going  _ soft  _ on me?”

Jack felt his face heat up slightly, but then he turned up his nose. 

“Of course not! As soon as you're well, I will have a stick sharpened on both ends ready for you. Ralph, I’m going to  _ kill you, _ ” he sneered, and Ralph believed him. He shook lightly and averted Jack’s gaze. 

“Princess,” Jack spoke softly, his face morphing into something like a smile. “There is no reason to be scared. Now,  _ pretty boy _ , we are going on a hunt. If you even  _ think  _ escaping, I will not hesitate to kill you, sick or not.”

Ralph nodded slowly. “Am I allowed to come? I’m dying to get out of this stupid hut.”

Jack visibly stiffened before shaking his head. 

“No. You need to stay here to rest. We won't be long, I promise.” Then he was gone, and Ralph let out a small breath he didn't even know he was holding. He brought a hand up to his rapidly beating heart with a smile. Ralph didn't mind waiting, but he knew some part of him would be happy when the wait was over. 

***

When he awoke again, Ralph heard fighting. And after a moment of listening, he realized it was about  _ him.  _

“Chief, you can't just keep him around  _ forever _ . You will have to kill him soon. And if you don't, I  _ will. _ ”

“Roger, you  _ can’t.  _ You just need to give me more time.”

“We’ve given you over a week, Chief. We want  _ blood,  _ and we don’t want to wait any longer. We have the perfect prey right in front of us.” 

“No! Just go kill a pig or something!”

“You love him, don't you?”

Both Ralph and Jack froze before Jack’s smooth voice returned. 

“I don't know yet. Maybe. I’m  _ confused,  _ Roger. Just give me a few more days.”

“I don't get it, Chief. Just because of some  _ stupid  _ name-”

“Yeah, you're right. You  _ don't  _ get it. So stop trying to meddle with something you  _ don't  _ understand!” 

There was silence for a moment before Jack spoke again. 

“I’m sorry. I honestly don't care who you kill, as long as it's not  _ him. _ ”

“I’m only giving you a few more days. I may try to understand you…  _ situation _ , but I’m sure the rest of the boys will not.”

“Yeah, whatever. I just don't know what to do.”

Roger laughed. “I don't know, Chief. Maybe you could try, you know, talking to him? Crazy, I know.”

“But what if something goes wrong? I can't-”

“Just go, you idiot.”

Jack hummed thoughtfully. “Let him sleep, for now. There will be time for that later.” 

Then the voices grew more distant, and Ralph almost screamed in frustration. 

***

Jack had been in an irritable mood all day, and Ralph could see it. He wasn't dotting over Ralph's health like he usually was (which, although he would never admit it out loud, Ralph  _ really  _ missed) and his movements and words were choppy and sharp. 

Ralph couldn't help but wonder if it was because they  _ both  _ knew Ralph was already fully recovered. 

“Okay, Princess. We are going out on another hunt.  _ Don't go anywhere.  _ Got it?”

Ralph stared dumbly at Jack for a moment before slowly nodding. 

Jack smirked, obviously pleased with the power he held over the smaller boy, and stood to leave the shelter. 

“Don't die before I get back, Princess” Jack added in a whisper. “That would make me terribly unhappy.”

Ralph blinked. 

And Jack was gone. 

***

Ralph knew something went wrong on the hunt the moment he heard voices. They were shouting and arguing and all Ralph could think was that Jack was going to be  _ seriously angry _ . 

“If you had just killed him right away, none of this would have happened!”

That was Roger yelling, and Ralph immediately sat upright to try and better hear the arguing. 

“You  _ can't  _ put the blame on him, Roger! It was my fault it got away-”

“Because you were distracted by him! I know you are! So either make your decision now or I swear I  _ will  _ kill him!” 

There was silence for a moment, and then Jack was bursting into the shelter, eyes slanted with rage and breath coming out heavily. 

Jack roughly grabbed Ralph’s wrist, eliciting a sharp gasp from Ralph. 

“What are you doing?” he hissed, ripping his wrist from Jack’s grasp. 

“I knew it,” Jack breathed, subconsciously reaching down to rub at his own wrist. 

“You're Ralph Medevane, I presume?”

There was a beat of silence before Ralph nodded. 

“Thats me.”

For a moment, they just stared at each other, eyes wide and hearts thumping ever quicker in their chests. 

Jack was the first to move. He surged forward, placing a light kiss to Ralph’s forehead, and then he was gone. Ralph found himself alone in the shelter, blushing profusely, and even more confused than ever. 

**Author's Note:**

> The last name "Medevane" for Ralph came from a really good fic that I can't remember the name of whoops
> 
> There may be a sequel to this someday you never know
> 
> For more shenanigans, follow my tumblr jackmerridewme


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